1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to robotic gripper assemblies. More particularly, the present invention relates to a robotic gripper assembly which includes finger mounting receptacles which can be positioned at a plurality of radial positions.
2. Disclosure Information
Robotic gripper assemblies are known having finger pairs coupled to rotatable gears for moving the fingers toward and away from each other such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,598,942. Typically, the rotatable movement of these fingers may not be suitable for a wide variety of objects having different shapes. My U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,669, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, discloses an adaptable robotic gripper assembly which utilizes a slotted disk and cam arrangement to affect linear motion of a pair of mechanical robotic fingers through rotational movement of the slotted disk and cam arrangement. However, in order to change the circumferential position of the mechanical fingers of the '669 patent, it is necessary to remove the whole assembly from the end effector to which it is attached and rotate the entire assembly relative to the end effector. Removing the entire gripper assembly from the end effector can be a time consuming endeavor.
Other known robotic grippers have two fingers which move linearly in a single plane such as is disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 53-18165. As with the gripper assembly of the '669 patent, in order to change the circumferential position or the mechanical orientation of the finger assemblies of the Japanese disclosure, it is necessary to remove the entire gripper assembly from the end effector and rotate the gripper assembly relative to the end effector. Therefore, there is a need to provide a gripper assembly wherein the circumferential position of the mechanical fingers of the gripper mechanisms can be varied without the need for removing the entire gripper assembly from its end effector.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a robotic gripper assembly wherein the mechanical fingers of the assembly can be positioned in a variety of positions around the circumference of the assembly.
It is a feature of the present invention to provide a robotic gripper assembly capable of handling a wider variety of shapes than heretofore possible. These objects and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the summary, detailed description, and claims which follow.